Daly: NHL wants to make 'right decision' regarding draft date
The NHL is taking the patient route regarding a decision on when to hold the 2020 draft.
Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman reported Sunday it could happen as early as June 5. But despite holding a board of governors meeting Monday to discuss the possibility, the league has yet to make a decision, reports TSN's Pierre LeBrun.
"We think it’s more important to get the right decision than to get a quick decision," NHL deputy commissioner Billy Daly told LeBrun via email.
While a vote from the board of governors is not required for the league to hold a June draft under these circumstances, LeBrun said that commissioner Gary Bettman wanted to hear from teams before the league ultimately makes a decision by the end of the week.
When the idea for a June draft was initially brought up a couple weeks ago, LeBrun polled all 31 GMs for their opinion. There were six yes votes, 15 no votes, eight maybes, and two nonresponses.
The league is considering holding the event earlier than usual because if the season resumes this summer, it would leave little time this offseason to hold a lottery and a draft before the 2020-21 campaign begins, according to Friedman.
If the draft is held in early June, the league will reportedly revert to the old lottery format.
The draft was originally scheduled for June 26-27 in Montreal, but it was postponed on March 25 due to the COVID-19 crisis.